Even when I was a kid living in the Bible Belt, this was not a thing with any family I ever ate meals with. Which is not to say that it wasn’t anywhere, but all of my friends were atheists, pagans, and Unitarians.

In my home, if you want to do some superstitious ritual before eating, knock yourself out, but don’t expect anyone to wait for you to get done before digging in, or to not look at you like Tony and Walky are looking at Joyce.

In my experience (living in a rural community) if even one person in a group suggests or starts to say grace, everyone else will either follow suit or wait quietly until it is finished. It is considered rude to comment, stare, or start stuffing your face. My mamma raised a polite atheist.

Tony’s facial expression is a picture. He really, really wishes that Walky and Joyce didn’t flirt in front of him so blatantly. It reminds him of how his only serious relationship has sort of imploded.

Hey, if I’m understanding this Trinity thing right, God did go from SMITEY SMITEY FLOODY SMITEY BURNY ZAP ZAP ZAP SMITEY to “Forgive them, for they know not what they do,” so I can think of worse deities to help Joyce calm down a little.

Three Thoughts:
1) Joyce, I’m pretty sure peeking during prayer to see what people think of you is missing the point
2) Apparently I live in the only social circles in the world where pre-food prayer is not particularly noted either way, and everyone just does their own thing and gets on with their lives
3) I don’t get the author note. Is she praying to The Cheese?

See if that were me at the table it wouldn’t be so much “you’re weird” as, “wait am I supposed to wait for you to finish? Is it rude to eat before you’re ready to eat even though I’m not going to pray? Or is it rude to wait and make a big deal out of it bec- oh dammit okay it was the latter.”